DETROIT -- Credit Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire for his words of wisdom for Spencer Torkelson to try to loosen up the top overall Draft pick on his first pro workout Saturday at Comerica Park.

“I was trying to get a loan,” Gardenhire deadpanned, “see what he had.”

OK, that wasn’t really what Gardenhire told him.

“No, I just talked about being calm,” Gardenhire continued. “There’s a reason he’s here: because he’s a really good player. I don’t want him going out and trying to prove this or prove that. Just go out and have fun and play. And he did that pretty good. He handled himself pretty well. I just wanted to reassure him. We’re happy to have him, excited to have him. Just take it easy, relax and enjoy the game of baseball like you have.”

It’s not the first time Gardenhire has had encouraging words for a top overall pick on his way up. And in some ways, Gardenhire’s experiences with Joe Mauer two decades ago might still be relevant today.

Like Torkelson, Mauer was a highly touted player regarded as a potentially generational hitter. Unlike Torkelson, Mauer had the added pressure of being a hometown hero when the Twins drafted him in 2001, and a two-sport athlete who was recruited to play quarterback at Florida State.

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Gardenhire was in his third season as Twins manager when Mauer made his Major League debut on Opening Day in 2004. Their player-manager relationship continued for a decade. When Mauer retired after the 2018 season, Gardenhire made the trip to Minneapolis to attend his announcement.

“Joe, as we all know, was a really talented kid, multi-sport star athlete,” Gardenhire said. “I mean, he could do anything he wanted. He could’ve played college football, and who knows where he [would’ve] went from there. He was a great quarterback and basketball, he set everything. He was one of those local kids that just had it all, and he handled it very, very well; very easygoing kid.

“And in talking with Tork, it seems like he’s already been through a little bit of the gamut. It’s a lot bigger thing now than it was back then, a lot more media, the whole package. Tork’s probably going to have a little bit more of that than Joe did, but I think from what I’ve seen -- and I’ve only talked to him one time out on the field so far -- he seems like he’s been there and done it, I’ll just tell you that. And Joe was the same way. Joe made time for everybody and was a class act, the whole package. And I think we got Tork in about the same situation.”

Hey dad, wanna have a catch?

While some Major League pitchers were struggling to find catchers for their throwing sessions while training camps were suspended, Spencer Turnbull just had to go home to Mississippi.

Jim Turnbull went to Dick’s Sporting Goods, bought catcher’s gear and squatted behind the plate for his son.

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“He's caught me my whole life,” Spencer Turnbull said Sunday. “Anytime I go home in the offseason, I'll throw to him. He's not usually in full gear, but I'm throwing flat grounds to him all the time.”

And no, the hard-throwing Turnbull doesn’t let up on his mid-90s fastball.

“Normally when I throw to him, I'm full go,” he said. “Usually it's a little earlier in the offseason, so I'm probably not cranking out 95, but it's probably pretty close. He's been on the receiving end of some fun pitches for sure.

“He's never said [to let up] the whole time. He'll wear one in the shins if you ask him to.”

Policelli back at it

Brady Policelli went to Spring Training five months ago as an extra catcher, but he made an impression in Spring Training with his positional versatility. When Tigers officials put together their player pool for Summer Camp, they had Policelli in mind, not just to catch but to work around the diamond.

Gardenhire compared him to Chris Herrmann, whom he managed in Minnesota. Herrmann played the corner-outfield spots, first base and catcher with the Twins.

“Those guys are really important,” Gardenhire said. “Polly can play just about anywhere, and he made good progress in Spring Training, put some really good at-bats out there, and we moved him around a little bit. Those guys are really important, especially when you have a limited roster.

“I like him. I’ve always liked him since I saw him the first day, because he’s a real athletic kid, he’s game-on, and he works his tail off. He’s given himself an opportunity to do some things in this organization.”